Vietnam Daily News in English only!

[lush3ng]

profect pro

[vttnguyen]

US aircraft carrier cruises disputed Asian seas

By CHRIS BRUMMITT, AP

A U.S. aircraft carrier group cruised through the disputed South China Sea on Saturday in a show of American power in waters that are fast becoming a focal point of Washington's strategic rivalry with Beijing.

Vietnamese security and government officials were flown onto the nuclear-powered USS George Washington ship, underlining the burgeoning military relationship between the former enemies. A small number of journalists were also invited to witness the display of maritime might in the oil-rich waters, which are home to islands disputed between China and the other smaller Asian nations facing the sea.

The visit will likely reassure Vietnam and the Philippines of American support but could annoy China, whose growing economic and naval strength is leading to a greater assertiveness in pressing its claims there. The United States is building closer economic and military alliances with Vietnam and other nations in the region as part of a "pivot" away from the Middle East to Asia, a shift in large part meant to counter rising Chinese influence.

The Vietnamese officials took photos of F-18 fighter jets taking off and landing on the ship's 1,000-foot- (305-meter-) long flight deck, met the captain and toured the hulking ship, which has more than 5,000 sailors on board.

The mission came a day after Beijing staged military exercises near islands in the nearby East China Sea it disputes with U.S ally Japan. Those tensions have flared in recent days.

China claims nearly all of the South China Sea, where the U.S. says it has a national interest in ensuring freedom of navigation in an area crossed by vital shipping lanes. Vietnam, the Philippines and several other Asian nations also claim parts of the sea. The disputes attracted little international interest until the late 1990s, when surveys indicated possible large oil reserves. American rivalry with China has given the disputes an extra dimension in recent years.

The U.S. Navy regularly patrols the Asia-Pacific region, conducting joint exercises with its allies and training in the strategic region. The trip by the George Washington off the coast of Vietnam is its third in as many years. A second aircraft carrier, the USS John C. Stennis, has also conducting operations in the western Pacific region recently, according to the U.S. Pacific Fleet.

Capt. Gregory Fenton said the mission was aimed in part at improving relations with Vietnam and ensuring the U.S. had free passage in the South China Sea.

China's military buildup, including the launch of its own carrier last year and rapid development of ballistic missiles and cyber warfare capabilities, could potentially crimp the U.S. forces' freedom to operate in the waters. The United States doesn't publicly take sides in the territorial disputes among China and its neighbors.

"It is our goal to see the region's nations figure out these tensions ... on their own, our role of that to date is to conduct freedom of navigation exercises within international waters," Fenton said in an interview on the bridge.

Although claimant countries have pledged to settle the territorial rifts peacefully, the disputes have erupted in violence in the past, including in 1988 when China and Vietnam clashed in the Spratly Islands in a confrontation that killed 64 Vietnamese soldiers. Many fear the disputes could become Asia's next flash point for armed conflict.

Vietnam is pleased to accept help from its one-time foe America as a hedge against its giant neighbor China, with which it also tries to maintain good relations.

Still, the Hanoi government reacted angrily to recent moves by Beijing to establish a garrison on one of the Paracel islands, which Vietnam claims. The United States also criticized the move by Beijing, earning it a rebuke from the government there.

"China will take this (cruise) as another expression by the United States of its desire to maintain regional domination," said Denny Roy, a senior fellow at the East-West Center in Hawaii. "The U.S also wants to send a message to the region that it is here for the long haul ... and that it wants to back up international law."

While most analysts believe military confrontation in the waters is highly unlikely anytime soon, they say tensions are likely to increase as China continues pressing its claims and building its navy.

http://xfinity.comcast.net/articles/...sputed.Waters/

[vttnguyen]

Vietnam sentences 2 songwriters to prison terms

HANOI, Vietnam — Two musicians in Vietnam whose topical songs are popular among overseas Vietnamese were sentenced to prison Tuesday, prompting criticism from the United States and international rights groups.

Vo Minh Tri and Tran Vu Anh Binh were sentenced to four and six years in prison, respectively, on charges of spreading propaganda against the state, said Tri's lawyer, Tran Vu Hai. They faced possible sentences of up to 20 years.

In a half-day trial, a court in Ho Chi Minh City accused the musicians of posting songs on a website operated by an overseas Vietnamese opposition group, Patriotic Youth, according to Hai. Communist Vietnam does not tolerate challenges to its one-party rule.

Tri, 34, known as Viet Khang, has composed songs criticizing the government for not taking a more aggressive position against China in the potentially resource-rich South China Sea, where Vietnam, China and other Asian nations have competing territorial claims. A video of his song "Where is My Vietnam?" (Viet Nam Toi Dau) has been viewed more than 700,000 times on YouTube.

Binh, 37, is credited with writing the music for "Courage in the Dark Prison" (Nguc Toi Hien Ngang), a song that encourages nonviolent protest and expresses support for imprisoned blogger Nguyen Van Hai.

The convictions come a month after Hai, known as Dieu Cay, and two other Vietnamese bloggers were sentenced to four to 12 years behind bars on the same charges.

Human Rights Watch condemned Tuesday's trial and called for the songwriters' immediate release.

"First critics, then bloggers, then poets, and now musicians!" Phil Robertson, deputy director at the New York-based group's Asia division, said in a statement. "The international community can no longer stand by quietly as these free speech activists are picked off one by one by Vietnam's security apparatus."

Truc Ho, one of Tri's U.S.-based supporters, told The Associated Press in April that Patriotic Youth is a group of students, artists and young professionals who promote awareness of social justice and human rights issues in Vietnam.

After Tri was arrested in December, Truc Ho said he and some friends launched a campaign in the United States to press for the songwriter's release. Their online petition to the White House gathered more than 150,000 signatures within a month, he said.

The U.S. Embassy said it was deeply troubled by Tri's sentencing.

"This conviction is the latest in a series of moves by Vietnamese authorities to restrict freedom of expression. The Vietnamese government should release this musician, all prisoners of conscience and adhere to its international obligations immediately," embassy spokesman Christopher Hodges said in a statement.

http://xfinity.comcast.net/articles/...idents.Jailed/

[tuanhung]

have u guys heard or read news about the female vietnamese student who sent a parcel to some csvn govt jurisdiction with a home made bomb inside a box with the SVN flag? apparently she got caught and her reply was doing this to get money to buy a laptop...

[nguyend]

Subject: NASA predicts total black out on 23 to 25 th DEC 2012.

NASA predicts total blackout on 23-25 Dec 2012 during alignment of Universe. US scientists predict Universe change, total blackout of planet for 3 days from Dec 23 2012. It is not the end of the world, it is an alignment of the Universe, where the Sun and the earth will align for the first time. The earth will shift from the current third dimension to zero dimension, then shift to the forth dimension. During this transition, the entire Universe will face a big change, and we will see a entire brand new world.

[going-higher]

where is link to the source NguyenDe^ and what's that have to do with Vietnam but sound scary tho. End of the world is coming!..sike

[fuzzymemo]

where, I wanna read this too, haha

[nguyend]

Originally Posted by going-higher

where is link to the source NguyenDe^ and what's that have to do with Vietnam but sound scary tho. End of the world is coming!..sike

[nguyend]

Originally Posted by fuzzymemo

where, I wanna read this too, haha

[vttnguyen]

Originally Posted by nguyend

Subject: NASA predicts total black out on 23 to 25 th DEC 2012.

NASA predicts total blackout on 23-25 Dec 2012 during alignment of Universe. US scientists predict Universe change, total blackout of planet for 3 days from Dec 23 2012. It is not the end of the world, it is an alignment of the Universe, where the Sun and the earth will align for the first time. The earth will shift from the current third dimension to zero dimension, then shift to the forth dimension. During this transition, the entire Universe will face a big change, and we will see a entire brand new world.

No worry mate, Dec 23-25 doesn't exist because the world end on December 21st 2012 according to the Mayan calendar.

"It's the end of the world as we know it (and I feel fine)"

[tuanhung]

i enjoy wastin time on youtube searching for anything related to vietnam to watch just to update wtf is going on and anything....

do u guys hate after 5-6 pages, u get to the sbtn news bullshit?

[Siddude]

[QUOTE=Tu Do;98263967]China and 9 Countries Where Your Cellphone Conversation Will Be Intercepted


Vietnam


A policeman, flanked of local milicia members, tries to stop a foreign journalist from taking pictures as they guard outside the Ho Chi Minh City People's Court on Aug 10, 2011. (Ian Timberlake/AFP/Getty Images)


By Jack Phillips
Created: December 11, 2012 Last Updated: December 12, 2012

With the expansion of the Internet in Vietnam, the communist-ruled government has stepped up efforts to filter content via legal and regulatory means. It usually targets material deemed threatening to the state, the regime, or national security.
Vietnamese officials “listen to conversations and trace calls from those on their blacklist,” which includes “high-profile activists” and members of well-known and targeted organizations, according to Freedom House.
Officials also “sometimes disconnect mobile phone service of those who are actively engaged in activities that are deemed ‘reactionary,’” it said.
In September, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung publicly threatened that bloggers who publish content critical of the government will be “seriously punished.” Some bloggers published a series of scandals about members of the Communist Party. Meanwhile, free speech activists have been described as “terrorists” by the Vietnamese government. Some 24 journalists and bloggers are currently detained in Vietnam, according to Reporters Without Borders.

http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/worl...ed-323646.html


No wonder Vietnam under the Commies is such a backward ass sh*thole! Look at how ugly and uneducated looking these thugs called the Viet Cong police force are!!! It looks like they never even completed the 1st grade!!

How embarrassing! They look stupid, dress stupidly, and I bet probably speak stupidly too!

Viet Cong has made Vietnam into the backwater and furthest outpost of civilization!!! LOL

North Korea looks better than Commie Vietnam!

[yeuvungtau]

.....

[fuzzymemo]

vietnam gov suck, period.

[vttnguyen]

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all. Peace out.

[Siddude]

unfortunately our Viet Cong friends are so damn stupid they can't even admit the train wreck of a country they had created! Very tragic! Kinda funny because it isn't foreigners that had created the sh*tty ness of Vietnam but the sh*ttyness of Vietnam is homemade by little dimwit Viet Cong that are now passing it on to their Viet Cong children. Vietnam under Viet Cong rule will never be anything but a crappy, poor ass country with no technology, no education whatsoever!

Don't expect anything new for 2013! Communist form of government is one of the stupidest forms of government ever created. No wonder Viet Cong love it so much. Stupid usually seek out stupid! LOL

[nguyend]

[QUOTE=Siddude;98276119]

Originally Posted by Tu Do

China and 9 Countries Where Your Cellphone Conversation Will Be Intercepted


Vietnam


A policeman, flanked of local milicia members, tries to stop a foreign journalist from taking pictures as they guard outside the Ho Chi Minh City People's Court on Aug 10, 2011. (Ian Timberlake/AFP/Getty Images)


!

nhìn các chú công an con này mà quê cho cái dân tộc Việt này quá. Đồng phục thì nghèo đói , tóc tai thì kiểu Hàn Quốc , phong cách thì gangster. Công an trưởng thì miệng vừa tút còi tay thì che mặt, trốn ống kính giống như tử tù. Chẳng ra cái thể thống gì cả.

[tuanhung]

1975 ALL OVER AGAIN....where u turn in ur money/gold, u get the same amount as the next family in line, didnt matter how much u had...lmao...seems like they are back to there bag of old tricks again....

http://www.sbtn.net/D_1-2_2-95_4-684...bi-xoa-so.html

[nguyend]

China and Vietnam: Danger in the South China Sea
John D. Ciorciari & Jessica Chen Weiss
January 10, 2013

http://www.chinausfocus.com/foreign-...uth-china-sea/

The Sino-Vietnamese dispute in the South China Sea has intensified since 2009, as thirst for offshore energy reserves increases. China and Vietnam have taken very different approaches to advance their respective claims, and each carries important dangers that must be managed carefully to avoid locking the parties—and perhaps the surrounding region—into a path toward conflict.

John Ciorciari
The latest round in the dispute began several weeks ago, when Vietnam accused a Chinese fishing boat of “seriously violating Vietnam’s sovereignty” by cutting a seismic cable of a Petro Vietnam vessel exploring the seabed near the Gulf of Tonkin. The incident was a replay of a similar altercation in May 2011, prompting the expansion of Vietnamese maritime patrols and the latest outburst in a series of public protests. The anti-China rallies in Vietnam drew roughly 200 people and dissipated only after Vietnamese authorities detained 22 of the protesters. China maintains that the sovereignty of the South China Sea is “undisputed” and opposes any unilateral energy exploration efforts by rival claimants. China has focused on deterring other states from exploration or other activities that would help establish footholds and solidify rival claims. China has typically conducted patrols with nonmilitary vessels belonging to civilian agencies, including maritime affairs and fisheries. Yet in perhaps an early indication that Xi Jinping does not intend to take a gentler approach than his predecessor, on January 1 new rules took effect authorizing the Hainan police to board and search boats in at least some disputed waters, most likely around the Paracel Islands. China is also boosting its naval power, most recently by contracting for four Russian attack submarines and transferring two destroyers and nine other naval vessels to its maritime surveillance fleet.

Jessica Chen Weiss
China has also pursued a wedge strategy, trying to prevent its smaller rivals from ganging up on Beijing in multilateral talks or seeking protection from extra-regional powers. For example, the state-affiliated Chinese paper Global Times warned in July 2012 that Vietnam would “feel pain” if it facilitated the U.S. return to the region, asserting that the United States would use its position to force political change in Hanoi. In December, the state-owned China Daily published an opinion piece arguing that throughout 2012, “some Southeast Asian countries attempted to put bilateral disputes under multilateral frameworks,” and the United States and Japan “took the opportunity to add fuel to the fire, trying to stir up the troubled waters.” Domestically, China has framed the South China Sea issue as part of a larger struggle against a tightening ring of U.S.-led containment—a narrative that taps into popular nationalism but also reflects genuine strategic concerns.

Although Vietnam has also tried to strengthen its navy, its inability to match China’s might has led it to seek foreign support. Vietnam has worked with the Philippines and other states to “multilateralize” the issue in regional forums including ASEAN, APEC, and the East Asia Summit. Although some ASEAN officials have criticized Vietnam for provoking China, most interested parties have joined in Vietnam’s call for a multilateral resolution, forcing China to play diplomatic defense.

Vietnam has had success “internationalizing” the dispute as well, taking advantage of the convergent interests of the United States and other major powers to enlist their help. U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta’s visit to Cam Ranh Bay, naval visits to three Vietnamese ports, and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s push for a multilateral code of conduct—all reinforced the U.S. tilt toward Vietnam in 2012. After the latest cable-cutting incident in December, an Indian admiral also announced that India is undertaking exercises to protect its interests in the South China Sea, including an agreement with Petro Vietnam enabling India’s state oil and gas firm to explore disputed areas off Vietnam’s southern coast.

Internally, Vietnam has allowed numerous anti-China protests to occur since June 2011—a marked contrast to its swift repression of similar protests in 2007. The communist leadership remains wary of political protests but has been loath to crack down on anti-China demonstrations for fear of appearing “anti-nationalistic.” Moreover, many of the protesters’ placards feature English language slogans about international law, making them resonant with Vietnam’s diplomatic effort to broadcast grievances and seek foreign support.

Both states’ strategies are risky. China’s assertiveness may harden alliances, accelerate defense spending around the region, and reduce space for future compromises. Clumsy diplomatic moves—such as printing passports with the disputed territories on a map of China and pressuring Cambodia to do its bidding in recent ASEAN discussions on the South China Sea—only add to the backlash. As the contest intensifies, nationalist voices gain leverage in Beijing and limit China’s ability to back down.

Vietnam’s toleration of anti-China protesters—many of whom have criticized the government for selling out to China—may have a similar effect. Moreover, Hanoi’s balancing tactics irritate Beijing, fuel Chinese nationalism, and add to the PRC’s sense of encirclement. China has ample military and economic means to punish Hanoi, and it is unclear that Vietnam’s friends will stand by its side if push comes to shove.

Escalation is not in either state’s interest. Vietnam would risk a humiliating defeat, and China would only contribute to the containment regime it fears by waging war. The real danger lies in domestic politics that could compel both states to escalate when further incidents occur at sea. The more China and Vietnam indulge nationalism to boost their domestic appeal, draw attention, or signal resolve, the less room will remain for compromise.

The United States also has a pivotal role, not by confronting China directly—which would prompt Chinese countermeasures and encourage reckless behavior by Vietnam—but in supporting freedom of navigation and peaceful dispute resolution. Agreement on sovereignty is highly unlikely in the near future, but incremental progress is possible. The goal of diplomacy now should be to create space for China, Vietnam, and other claimants to make progress toward a code of conduct and joint development of energy resources. Although these measures will not solve the South China Sea disputes, they will help make the problem more tractable, steering away from the territorial issues that inflame the greatest nationalist passions.

John D. Ciorciari is an assistant professor at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, University of Michigan, and author of The Limits of Alignment: Southeast Asia and the Great Powers since 1975 (Georgetown University Press, 2010).

Jessica Chen Weiss is an assistant professor in the Department of Political Science at Yale University and author of Powerful Patriots: Nationalist Protest in China’s Foreign Relations (book manuscript under review).

[vttnguyen]

Originally Posted by Tu Do

Activists Convicted in Vietnam Crackdown on Dissent



A number of the defendants are members of the Redemptorist group in the Roman Catholic Church, which has been engaged in community service and has taken up the causes of land seizures and corruption. Redemptorist activists have become increasingly assertive in Vietnamese movements for democracy and human rights, and some churches and parishes have become centers of dissent.

Some defendants have participated in peaceful protests in support of other dissidents who were on trial or in relation to China.

Protests have grown in recent years over China’s claims to disputed territory in the South China Sea and over a major bauxite plant run by China in Vietnam’s central highlands. The government has cracked down on demonstrations ....

Read more in:

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/10/wo...sent.html?_r=0


RFA :

14 Tried for Dissent

2013-01-08



Police stand guard outside the courtroom in Vinh, Nghe An province where 14 activists went on trial, Jan. 8, 2013.

A group of Vietnamese activists stand trial, amid tight security, for alleged anti-state activity...

Read more in :

http://www.rfa.org/english/news/viet...013181353.html


New restrictions on religious freedom in Vietnam

January 03, 2013

Decree 92, issued by Vietnam’s Communist government in November, went into effect on January 1 and is raising concerns among the nation’s Christians and Buddhists – particularly after the vice president of the nation’s parliament said that “Vietnam will increasingly model itself on China in matters of religious policies.”

“Under the norm religious will be forced to undergo to an ‘educational program’ on the history of Vietnam and its legislation, sponsored and held by representatives of the ministries of Interior, Justice and Education,” explains Nguyen Hung of AsiaNews. “Members of the clergy are required to prepare a specific request in the case of foreign travel for conferences and ask authorities’ ‘permission’ in the case of transfers to a different area of the country.” ...

Read more in :

http://www.catholicculture.org/news/...?storyid=16672

Vietnam: CSW concerned about new decree restricting freedom of religion (Christian Solidarity Worldwide)

http://dynamic.csw.org.uk/article.asp?t=press&id=1471

Decree 92: Hanoi chooses Chinese model and clamps down on religious freedom

http://www.asianews.it/news-en/Decre...dom-26521.html

Proceedings have been criticized by human rights groups.

"There is nothing to indicate the defendants intended to overthrow the government," Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch told the Reuters news agency.

http://www.dw.de/vietnam-jails-more-...sts/a-16507894


CPJ's 2012 prison census showed Vietnam held 14 reporters behind bars, making the country the sixth worst jailer of journalists in the world. Thirteen of those 14 imprisoned journalists published predominantly on independent blogs or for other online publications.


Vietnamese activists and bloggers stand for sentencing in court. (AFP/Vietnam News Agency)

http://www.cpj.org/2013/01/bloggers-...in-vietnam.php

For more data and analysis on Vietnam, visit CPJ's Vietnam page here :

http://www.cpj.org/asia/vietnam/

... the accused - who are also alleged to have been involved in in anti-China demonstrations ...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-20946493


Các bài báo Tây Phương cho hay là chính phủ cộng sản Việt Nam áp dụng chính sách giơí hạn và ràng buộc tôn giáo theo đường lôí chính sách của Trung Quốc .

Ngoài ra những ngươì bị buộc tộî đã thường hay tham gia biểu tình phản đôí Trung Quốc .

Disgraceful